SanDisk Sansa m250 2 GB MP3 Player (Black)

I didn't know if I'd use an MP3 player much when I bought this device and I didn't want to spend too much. I've now owned it for over a year and I cannot live without it. I use it for listening to audio books, news and podcasts. I used to read about 12 - 15 books a year, but now -- because I can take this on walks, listen to it while I'm driving and traveling and doing errands -- I "read" about 50 books a year and have a more active lifestyle. It is easy to download books from Audible, or using the Playfor Sure technology I can download books from my local library. I chose this device over the more expensive iPod and other MP3 devices both for the Play for Sure feature (which means free books from my local library) but also because it uses a single AAA battery so I don't have to lug another charging device when I travel or try to remember to charge it before I go somewhere. I just have to carry a very small extra battery. It has excellent quality and features for downloading and listening to books including the ability to flip through chapters, easily rewind or fast forward or hook up to speakers when I want to free myself from the earbuds. I don't worry about damaging it or losing it becaue it's so inexpensive to replace. I don't worry about it getting stolen either. I have dropped it, banged it, gotten it wet, accidentally smeared lotions and cosmetics on it and I just throw it in my purse whereever I go. It's scratched and worn, but it still works like a charm. If I did lose it or break it, I'd probably get one just like it as a replacement because it works so well and 2 megs is plenty to carry 5 or 6 books, a few newscasts and podcasts, even some music. There are two features I'd like to see on this device and I'd pay extra for them. 1) Bookmark feature so you can save a place (or preferrably multiple places) in a story electronically, and: 2) Sleep timer so the device goes off in a preset time - say 10 - 15 minutes. Given the reliability of this device, I'm confident those features will be available on this device or a similar one by the time I need a replacement.

My wife and I have owned two SanDisk Sansa m240 Players for years and have loved them. Recently I wanted a Sansa that had more memory so I could load it up with old time radio mystery shows to listen to. We're retired and we walk long distances every day for health. These old radio shows are 30 and 60 minutes in length so I wanted an mp3 player with more memory that could hold a lot of shows, this model holds over 300 shows which is a lot considering how long each show is. We really like our m240 Sansa's because they use just (1) simple AAA battery and I wanted another Sansa that also used just a single battery. We just carry a couple of spare batteries with us when we walk and if one goes out while walking, which has happened more than once, we just pop in another without even having to stop walking. If we were using a USB rechargeable type of mp3 player, it would be really inconvenient! Plus I do not like having to always remember to plug in my player to my computer to recharge it, I know I would always forget to do it! The built in radios also work excellent, no skimping and you can have preset channels. these Sansa players are simple to use, have simple battery use and great sound. They also record, but since we haven't tried that function I can't say how well it works, but probably works just as well as the rest of the unit. I should add that when we bought our m240 units, they were refurbished units and have worked flawlessly for years. I bought the m250 as a new unit. These are great units!

This was delivered today, and I've already filled it up with 2G's of my music. I bought this just to take to the gym, and I'm pleased with the size and weight. It is also easy to use, and I don't think it will be a problem while on the treadmill. I didn't even try the arm band and case that came with it because, well, it's cheap plastic (looks like a kid's toy). I bought the gel case when I purchased the player, so I went ahead and put that on. (And I'll be heading over to give that five stars of its own momentarily...) I took it out of the packaging and plugged it in to my laptop, which is running Vista, and held my breath... it recognized the device and installed the drivers with no problem. Drag and drop songs is super easy, and all went smoothly. I tried using the ear buds that came with it, but without the foam covers they hurt my ears and with the covers they won't stay in my ears, so I'll be using different headphones. Though I will say that these ear buds were pretty good quality sound if you can tolerate them. My only complaints so far are that (1) there does not appear to be a random or shuffle function. I see a repeat loop, but no shuffle. That sucks, because I don't want to listen to things in the same order each time. That's just silly! Which leads me to (2) the EasyStart CD (which I'm assuming contains the full manual) will not run on Vista. [Hey, I know I should be happy it recognizes the player at all...] If I want to fully research the possibility of a random feature or figure out the playlist feature (the "Quick Start Guide" was a bit lacking in explaining that aspect), I'm going to have to explore the website, and I'm not in the mood for that headache right now. I'm all for saving trees by including manuals on disc, but they should be in a .pdf format or something, and not some program file that can only run on XP. I'll revise my rating if the player decides to freeze up on me or crash like others have. But so far, it's doing great. Way cheaper than an iPod, and I love that it uses a single AAA battery, which is easy enough to keep on hand in my gym bag. No more remembering to recharge batteries!!

I was shopping for MP3 players for my wife and I. We are new to this technology. After researching a great many players, including those with video capabilities, we decided on the Sansa m250. We would have liked a player with greater (than 2 Gb) capacity, but settled on this one for a number of reasons. First was the fact that it uses an AAA battery, instead of a proprietary one. I found on-line videos and instructions about replacing the battery in i-Pods models, Zune's, and several others. Besides the relatively high costs of such batteries and tools one should have to replace the battery, the operations are so intricate and prone to risk of damage to the units, that we were dissuaded from buying a model with internal, rechargeable batteries. Second was the price: less than $30 and with free shipping! Third was the many positive reviews posted here. I accidentally damaged the mini-CD that contained the manual when I was trying to open the #!%*$#@^ clamshell packaging. I went on line to Sandisk and tried to find the manual but didn't have any luck. I sent an e-mail asking for the url to download it. The first reply was one of those "knowledgebase" auto-replies that didn't address the specifics of my request and didn't help. I sent another request to customer service asking for a human to read my message. I promptly received a reply with the correct information and was able to download the manual. Great customer service is a forth reason to strongly consider this model if it meets your needs. The player, including the radio, works great, and it was easy for me to figure out its operation and change settings even though I'm a novice and did not have a manual. The Quick-Start guide was adequate to get me started. [added note almost two years later]. I see the product is still being sold, but at a higher price!! I use this player when I'm working around the farm. I play it for 1-4 hours most days. It is still going strong, despite some knocks now and then, including a couple of drops. I use rechargeable NIMH batteries, and typically have to replace them every couple of days. If I'd been buying disposables, I'd have gone through hundreds!! This is a great gadget for what it does. My wife has switched to an ipod--she has troubles keeping it charged when we travel, especially overseas. I just pack a few extra batteries and never have to worry about finding a connection and carrying voltage transformers, etc. SanDisk Sansa m250 2 GB MP3 Player (Black)

I have several of the Sandisk Sansa in the style listed here. I know there are many other MP3 players on the market with much more storage capacity and I just have to say POOH on that. This little player is easy to use I have one full of my audible audio books others filled with music and no charged 1 simple triple A battery and I have at least 20 hours of play. For the price it is a great starter for those still unsure of what to buy. Although I do recommend the 2 gig version simply for the storage space. My only negative comment is that the removal of items from the player isn't always easy it will show you it has been removed but the space won't be open. Like I said 1 complaint isn't bad at all. The worst thing I have found is I misplace mine a lot:) But that's on me. Trust me, I bought a very expensive Memorex Mp3 and it was the worst mistake of my life needed to charge constantly and the menu was a nightmare. My parents being parents got me an RCA MP3 for Christmas last year. Like the Memorex since both are charged via USB the battery never stayed charged as it should have. I do not mind products such as the Sandisk Sansa that use actual batteries. They are reliable and easily replaceable some last several days if I use it a lot. My only wish was I could get one with about a 10 gig HD or better. This little player has my love it fits all my needs and is easy to use, navigate, load and run. I love Audible and can say easily that I currently have one of my 2 gig Sansa's loaded with 15 unabridged books that is a lot of listening for my money. When I get a chance hopefully I'll be able to pick up a few more I love having these in my life small, portable and I can use it with computer speakers, mp3 speakers and no problem. So if you are just starting out give this little guy a try:)

Let me tell everyone; I bought the first Sansa about 2 years ago, Then I bought one for for 2 of my closest friends. Then I bought one more for myself, and then about a year later I found I couldn't buy anymore of the m250s. I was so upset, I looked all over the net and found some for sale on Ebay, and bought one of those. Then guess what; I wanted another and was interested in buying one of the rechargable ones at Radio Shack. I ended up with a Centon Movox the salesman talked me into, and it was pure garbage. Now I find to my absolute delight that Amazon has the Sansa m250 again! Hooray! I am tonight buying 2 more, just in case I break one. And at bargain prices! I hope to hell Sansa will keep making this model, it is a winner! I absolutely love these, they are reliable, and the company tech support will help thoroughly if you need it. I love the AAA battery powered feature since I kept finding when I'm working it's a lot easier to pop another battery in it, than to have to plug one into a charger. I now have one for each of my vehicles, my house, and both of my backhoes. I bought a pair of noise canceling headphones to plug into the Sansa, or plug my vehicle's hifi into it, and I am set up in music lover's heaven. THANK YOU SANDISK! By the way, screw Ipod.

Pros - uses AAA batteries, plays for 12 hours, easy to use, computer hookup is straight forward, plenty of features like radio, voice recording, storage space is great. Cons - could use more volume. This thing is great. The 12 play time, not just a one time deal, but day after day 12 hours worth of play time. Change the AAA batteries and play it again Sam. Easy to use buttons and functions. Computer hookup and file transfer is easy and straight forward. I use this when I ride my Sportster to help reduce wind noise and to hear some tunes and I luv it. Use it when I ride my street bike also or when working in the yard. Just pop in some rechargeable batteries, takes about 30 seconds and play it all day long. Way better than those usb charged players. Dec 31 13, Happy New Year I still luv this thing. New Con - When loading music it seems to hit a point and no matter what you try it will not load more than 1/3 its capacity. I do not know if it is just my Player, and age has gotten to it or it is subject to all. But after about 10+ CD's it says can not create file. Yet I still have, about, 1.4 Gig of room left. I have tried putting all my music in one folder and it does the same thing, loads about 1/3 and stops or from individual folders same thing. Just stops. My play time may have been off, with a Duracell rechargeable battery I get over 12 hours of play time and with the high output Duracell I get over 15 hours. Still a great little machine. I do not remember where, but when I bought this machine it was less than $50 brand new.

The player has good sound and the ear buds are OK. I do prefer the less tangly heavier wires of Apple iPod ear buds. The control buttons seem robust and nearly flush with the surface so inadvertent presses are unlikely. The hold button works as expected. The shutdown requires a long press which is a nice feature for similar reasons. The included case is a bit cheesy plastic, and it does not come with a lanyard, but has a hardware loop for attaching one. For MacUsers, you simply plug the player into the USB port and drag MP3 files from iTunes or Finder windows into the player icon on the desktop or into its Finder window. For PCfolk, Microsoft WMP software is apparently supported (I am a MacUser, so I cannot attest to that). The minidisc that comes with the player has PC software on it...so I cannot comment on that either. The player will ignore the fact that you have grouped music files in folders. It does not recognize or organize iTunes playlists. The player manual has no instructions for MacUsers. According to SanDisk support folk, unless you are willing to use Microsoft products (WMP), playing by playlist is impossible. However there is a workaround that I figured out for myself. The workaround is to edit the entries in the Album or Artist fields for the iTunes information for each file...because the player will play by Album or by Artist...before loading them into the player. The iTunes Grouping field is NOT recognized by the player as one might hope. The default Play All of the player plays all of the tunes on the player alphabetically by the song Title field regardless of the other field entries. I would have preferred that the player recognize files in folders as belonging to a playlist. My old iRiver had that feature. The player is somewhat hard to use at first mostly because if you stop the player by powering down, it will start up continuing from where you stopped it. But if the player gets to the end of the Album or Artist list of files and naturally stops on its own, pressing play will not restart the player. You have to power down and restart, open the menu, and then select what to play from the menu again. Otherwise the player seems to be frozen, showing a track but not able to start playing it, and no amount of clicking of buttons (play/pause, skip forward, skip backward, stop, or select) will get it to play the file shown on the screen. It seems frozen...until you power down. This was VERY frustrating in learning how to use this player, and the manual does not detail this "feature." So you can expect to need some experimentation to get comfortable with this player. I would have given this model two fewer stars because of all this difficulty of use, and the failure of the company to support MacUsers, except for the very low price of the player. It is a bargain in terms of memory capacity and price at the time of this review (12/2008). After losing the battery compartment cover of my iRiver unit and the fact that iRiver could not supply a replacement, I strongly urge users of this SanDisk player to keep the cheesy case on the player or to purchase the much nicer silicone skin which I have reviewed elsewhere.